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The Ruins of Varsoon
Lore Regardless of race, faction or diety, every soul on Norrath has heard the name Varsoon. To some this merely denotes the dungeon, full of adventure and thrill to be had, but to others versed in history, the name denotes nothing but fear. Valdoartus Varsoon grew up during the Combine Era and already by a young age was simultaneously breaking and creating whole fields of arcane study. He was the first mage in the history of the Archesian Order to solve all seven of the Ember Conundrums on his first attempt. Not content with this, he sought out to discover a previously unknown Conundrum. He soon developed a spell that could draw fire from pure stone, thereby discovering the Eighth Conundrum. With this spell in hand he went before the Illucidic Council and in a fortnight the council of Norrath's elite mages officially credited Valdoartus with the discovery and allowed him unrestricted access to any and all fields of magical study. He chose Planar Thaumaturgy. For the next several years, Varsoon studied, experimented and perfected this most difficult of magics. When he finally mastered the discipline, he would travel through different planes of reality, bringing back to our world strange artifacts of unnatural ability. But it wasn't until he discovered a sigil-etched ivory cup, which he would later refer to just as his chalice, that his treks through the planes of existence began to take a singular course. Immortality, the conquering of death itself, became Varsoon's new obsession. Valdoartus erected a keep on the Plains of Karana devoted to finding a way to cure death. Forty years later, Varsoon had gone completely mad and was already experimenting on men, women and children. When word eventually got out about the horrors being committed within Valdoartus' keep, Qeynos responded in full force. In an epic battle of arcane might, The Qeynos Guard triumphed over Varsoon and his twisted followers. The keep was burned to the ground. Unfortunate for the denizens of Qenynos and Norrath, it was underground, not above it, that Varsoon has discovered the secret to immortality. After the battle, Valdoartus was put on trial and burned at the stake. Ten thousand people came to witness the execution of the legendary mage. His burnt body was buried in an unmarked grave far out in the countryside. For many generations, the people of Qeynos and Norrath would sleep a little easier knowing that a person like Varsoon no longer existed in the world. However, when the Bloodsabers, worshipers of Bertoxxulous, came out of hiding and laid siege upon Qeynos during the War of Plagues, they were being led by none other that Valdoartus himself. It was then that he began to be referred to as Varsoon the Undying. Once again the forces of The Qeynos Guard found themselves entwined in battle against Varsoon, except this time Varsoon had no moral (or mortal) restraints on magic. He summoned undead legions to join the ranks of the Bloodsabers and battle raged between the forces of life and the forces for death for several long months. Varsoon would prove to be overzealous and through commands best reserved for the immortal, led to discontent amongst his ranks. Whilst disorganized, Qeynos gained the upper hand, broke through the siege and decimated the forces of Varsoon. In the aftermath of the battle, a body was discovered still breathing, yet was burnt, pock-mocked and wrecked more than any mortal person could endure. Exarchs and priests of the Celestial Watch were summoned to perform divine magic specifically tuned for the eradication of liches. Varsoon's body was this time burnt completely to ash, placed in a special container and entombed on the Forbidden Isle, close to Qeynos, where the forces of life could forever keep an eye on him. Then, The Shattering happened. In the chaos that followed the destruction of Luclin, The Tomb of Varsoon was damaged. Whether through a meteor or by dark magic perfectly timed, the wards placed around the tomb weakened and the lock was destroyed. After the sky calmed, it was discovered that the ashes of Varsoon the Undying had gone missing. In dark fashion, rumors have recently sprung up of strange noises emanating from Varsoon's old keep in the Ruins of Karana. Remnants of the War of Plagues, zombies and skeletons, have been seeing congregating in great numbers around these ruins. Something is definitely afoot, and a brave adventurer is needed to confirm if Varsoon the Undying really lives up to his name. Geography Map left|400px Entrances *From: The Thundering Steppes ; lower-level entrance, enters at the start of the dungeon. *From: The Thundering Steppes ; higher-level entrance, enters half-way though the dungeon. Exits *To: The Thundering Steppes ; cave exit. *To: The Thundering Steppes ; goblin exit. Instances *Chamber of Immortality: Quests :''See: The Ruins of Varsoon Timeline Collections *Iridescent beetle collection *Enchanted bone fragments collection *Glowing shards collection *Pristine shards collection *Shiny shards collection